Matthew

Hey, beautiful people!! Let's take some time to talk about an amazing human being we know, Matthew Bennett. Matt is such an awesome spirit and energy and we are lucky to get to be in his presence when he is at our studio. His practice of self-love and understanding is something that we desire to see and feel in all of our students. He understands that the poses he practices are just the smallest portion of his life practice and he comes to his mat to feel good for himself. He doesn't judge himself or others and it really shows in the way that he practices. We are so thankful for the time we have with this beautiful soul and we would LOVE to share his story with all of you.

Matthew's Story:

A few years ago I tried Yoga and while I did NOT enjoy it, I could tell it was something my body needed. Prior to Sumits Yoga, I experienced mostly frustration and feelings of inadequacy, since I couldn’t do all the poses—with an instructor cracking the whip.

So I gave up yoga. But after a couple years, for some reason Sumits yoga sounded appealing. So I tried it. I admit it was very difficult but the instructors always set the stage for a successful class. I heard phrases like “moving meditation” and “what brought you to your mat?” and “set your intention” and “listen to your body” and “if you don’t have the yoga breath, take a break.”

I like that I do a better job of “listening to my body” now. I know when I’ve been good to myself and when I’ve not had the proper calorie intake. I can feel it during hot yoga! Sumits is great…I particularly like the silent room leading up to class, the no-talking during class, and I can’t imagine a better group of instructors anywhere.

My favorite and most challenging pose is half moon. It looks so simple, but there are many, many components to it. Compared to day 1, I’ve probably shown the most improvement in half moon. Actually for me, all the poses are challenging! But the soulful way the instructors approach the class takes the pressure off to compete or struggle. “Just get better. It’s a practice.”